Are Asian LNG Prices About To Rally?

Some summer demand for August boosted the price of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in Asia at the end of June from three-year lows earlier in the month, providing an incentive to traders to re-export cargoes to Asia from Northwest Europe, where prices continue to be depressed with ample LNG supply and high storage levels. Chinese and Japanese buyers active on the spot market boosted Asian prices last week. Yet, overall early summer demand is Asia is still muted as temperatures are moderate and cooler than last year’s heatwaves in Japan and China that sent LNG prices surging . Early forecasts suggest that traders shouldn’t bet on another heatwave this summer to prop up Asian LNG prices. If temperatures across Asia are more moderate and less volatile than last summer, as some weather forecasts suggest, demand could continue to be muted, deepening the glut in LNG as global supply continues […]